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19th October 2017
11:49am BST
Every year on October 31, people up the anti and the spooky by making their costumes bigger and better than ever before. However... at what cost?
According to Badrul Hussain, consultant ophthalmic surgeon in London, the party accessory is causing more damage than you think.
Speaking to the Metro, he said:
"Each year we treat patients, including children under 16, who have developed eye conditions after wearing cosmetic contact lenses. There can be an increase in these problems in the period around Halloween. Some of the cases we see, like patients sharing lenses with friends, wearing the same pair year after year well past the expiry date, and storing them in tap water, have devastating effects. Most of the patients haven’t been shown how to look after their cosmetic lenses or their eyes properly."He believes that incorrect knowledge and skill in applying contact lenses can also leave you with serious consequences. He continued...
"Not knowing the basics of using contact lenses safely can put you at higher risk of developing painful eye injuries, infections, and in the worst cases, risk of permanent sight loss. The cornea, the clear window at the front of the eye, is delicate and can be scratched easily by inexperienced contact lens wearers. This can expose the eye to organisms that can cause nasty infections, which in extreme cases can result in permanently impaired, or loss of, vision."Yep, we are thinking this year we will find alternative ways to be scary without the health risk.
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